Sex efficiency through exercises : special physical culture for women / by Th. H. van de Velde ; [photos, by E. Steinemann].

cushion. Breathe out, letting the arm sink slowly. Practise alternately on right and left sides. Note.—As soon as this posture becomes painful, as it will in advanced pregnancy, the exercise should be discontinued. It is possible to carry out the flank breathing while sitting in a chair with sloping back. (3) Costal Breathing (Figs. 20 and 21). This exercise is performed seated on a chair or on the floor, Turkish fashion. Inhale so that the ribs move, and, at the same time, move the arms sideways and raise the head without leaning back. When exhaling, let the arms cross over the breast and the head bend forwards, relaxing the neck. (4) Full Breathing (Figs. 5 and 22). Lie on the back with raised knees and arms stretched loosely on either side of the body as in Fig. 5. Exhale or breathe out on the hissing or whistling note (" ss " or " pf " sounds), then fill the abdomen again, letting the air dilate the ribs and flanks and meanwhile raising the arms slowly and bringing them backwards and outwards as in the posture shown in Fig. 22. While exhaling make the same arm movements, reversed, and return finally to the initial posture. (5) Passive Breathing Exercise (Figs. 22 and 23). The preceding exercise is very suitable for help from the gymnastic mistress or the physician. But note carefully that as the patient's arms are moved sideways they should lie quite loosely and heavily in the hands of the teacher or doctor, and that the patient's shoulders should not, on any account, be drawn upwards, but spread as widely as possible apart as may easily be managed (see Fig. 22). It helps complete exhalation if the gymnastic teacher presses the patient's hands against her ribs—not violently, of course, but firmly enough to be felt. Note.—The instructress should herself be able to breathe deeply and have a good lung capacity. She should breathe in and out with the patient, for, in respiratory exercises, a living example is surprisingly instructive and helpful.